> Love Prefers Twilight to Moonlight
>  by Charcoal Breeze
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Chapter 1
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	It wasn't an obsession.
If it were an obsession, there would be evidence. She'd have pictures and drawings and writing from Twilight everywhere in her house. That would be obsession. But still, after Twilight, Spike and their friend left Canterlot, she couldn't get the princess out of her mind.
Moondancer stared at the picture Spike had given her, of her and her friends, back before the whole incident with the party. She focused on herself and Twilight, next to each other, Twilight squinting at the pages and Moondancer looking at her with interest.
That's what it was: an interest, not an obsession. And it had its roots back when they were little fillies. It was no coincidence that they had identical manes and tails. Moondancer admired Twilight so much she tried to look more like her. She wasn't exactly the social type, so it was hard to get her attention, but once they started partnering up every time they had a project, Moondancer was delighted.
Those feelings faded into the background once Twilight left the city, especially since she didn't even say goodbye. They were overshadowed by anger. Moondancer felt absolutely betrayed. She'd thought that Twilight had no feelings whatsoever for her. She didn't care about her. She probably just thought of her as a study buddy and nothing more.
But then, Twilight came back. And after she worked so hard to make Moondancer happy, it lit up a flame of hope inside Moondancer. Maybe, Twilight loved her back after all.
Yes, that was what she wanted. She was in love. She'd always been in love. 
All of this was distracting her from her reading. If she wanted to study properly, Moondancer needed to be satisfied. Perhaps she should start studying for different purposes.
The possibilities that magic could bring her...it immediately gave her ideas. Impressing Twilight would be hard, since she was a magical princess of friendship, but it was probably possible. Perhaps she could use magic to make herself more appealing to Twilight.
And there was another option. It was incredibly risky, but if Moondancer got the potion just right, Twilight wouldn't be able to resist her. And it would last forever. Now where was that Hearts and Hooves Day book...?





"Noooooo! Come back, I want to give you cuddles!"
Twilight chuckled a bit as she turned her head. "You do this every time you spend the night with me."
Pinkie, the majority of her body still snug under the purple blanket, rubbed her eyes. "You don't have to do work today! So you don't have an excuse!"
"I don't just work on a schedule, you know. Sometimes things are unexpected."
"You can't escape!" Pinkie threw off the blanket, jumped off the bed, and ran to tackle Twilight. Twilight squealed a bit as she fell to the floor. Pinkie let herself fall on top of her and buried her head in Twilight's chest. Twilight hugged her tightly and nuzzled her, the two of them giggling. They rolled to their sides as Pinkie rubbed against Twilight's chest. Twilight rested her head on top of hers, flicking an ear as she rested her head on the dark pink floof. She felt Pinkie softly kiss her neck.
Then they got up, Pinkie stretching her legs. "What time is it?"
Twilight glanced at the clock on her wall. "It's almost eight thirty. We should have breakfast."
They headed out of the bedroom side by side. The room was small, compared to the rest of the rooms in this castle. It had been quite some time since the castle sprouted up from the ground, but Twilight was still getting used to the vast space around her. She was glad whenever Pinkie slept over. Having her with her made her feel less small. Especially since Pinkie was probably about half a foot shorter than her.
The first time Pinkie offered to sleep over was when Twilight confessed that she was still overwhelmed by the space in the castle. Pinkie had smiled and said, "Maybe if I'm with you, you won't be alone and you can be comfortable! And I can keep you warm!"
That had brought some reassurance to Twilight. And some strange delight. She couldn't think of why that feeling was there, but it stayed with her the whole time Pinkie was with her. They slept in the same bed, which was a little awkward but they both had agreed to it without any objections. Pinkie had fallen asleep first. Her face was against Twilight's chest--Twilight still wasn't sure if that was intentional--and her breath ruffled the fur a bit. Twilight had watched her, as her chest rose and fell against Twilight's body. That was when Twilight accepted that she was in love. It wasn't a crush like with Flash Sentry. Twilight was seriously in love with this girl. And she'd probably been in love with her for a long time. 
Twilight had confessed to her the next morning. She was extremely flustered about it. She felt her cheeks grow red hot as she tried to explain her thoughts. She'd said, "I-I love you...in the romantic sort of way..." She looked away, her heart banging against her ribcage, never so embarrassed in her life. It was one thing to confess love, but totally another to confess love to a close friend, who had been close for years.
Pinkie had approached her and nuzzled her forehead. Twilight glanced back up at her, and she was blushing a little too. "Can I kiss you?" she asked softly.
Twilight had smiled and nodded. And they didn't talk for a while after that. Spike had been a bit confused by the lack of conversation as they ate breakfast together, but Twilight had motioned for him not to say anything. Once they were left alone again, Pinkie asked, "So, um...are you my girlfriend now?"
"Do you want me to be?"
Pinkie had grinned and nodded.
This morning, as they headed to the dining room, Pinkie suddenly stopped. Twilight turned her head as Pinkie asked, "Do you wanna go out for breakfast instead?"
Twilight looked out the window. It was bright outside. "That'd be nice, but would we be able to do that this early?"
"We'll force them to feed us! Because you are the law in this town!"
"That's not how anything works," Twilight replied, smiling. "I guess we can try to go somewhere."
"Yay!"
As Twilight opened the front doors with her magenta telekinesis, she almost injured into a mailpony, who had backed away just in time. The lanky, tan colt was a unicorn, and with the light blue telekinesis that matched his startled eyes, he held a white envelope.
Twilight backed away a bit in embarrassment. "Ah, sorry, sorry! I didn't even think to check if somepony was in the way!"
The mailpony chuckled. "No, it's fine! This letter's for you, princess."
The aura around the envelope changed from light blue to magenta as Twilight took it. "Thank you! I'll read it while we have breakfast."
After the mailpony hurried off to make more deliveries, and the doors were closed again behind Twilight and Pinkie, Twilight glanced at the return address on the envelope. "Oh, wow."
"What?" Pinkie asked.
"You remember who Moondancer is, right?"
> Chapter 2
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Dear Princess Twilight Sparkle,
How are you? It's been a while since I last saw you. I've kind of missed you. If you're not busy or anything, I want you to come to Canterlot and stay here for a bit. I've opened up more since that party you and your friend set up for me, so thank you so much for that. I don't know how I can repay you. But if you could relax a little and have some fun in Canterlot, I can have you stay at my house instead of making you pay to stay at a hotel. Then again, you're a princess, so you probably wouldn't need to pay...anyway, I'd love it if you had a little vacation here. Your friend that came with you last time can come with you this time too, if she wants to. Spike too. This letter's getting long, so I should probably wrap things up...just let me know if you can do it, okay? You can come whenever you want, but I just want you to come here.
Sincerely,
Moondancer
She reread the slim letters she'd written over and over again. It had to be perfect. It had to be convincing, but not forcing. It had to be innocent. She couldn't let her real intentions slip. 
Moondancer finally decided that this letter was good enough. She folded it up with her pale pink telekinesis, and slipped it into the open white envelope she'd placed nearby. With the crimson feather quill she wrote the required addresses on the back. She turned the envelope over to slip the upper flap into it. Just one stamp and the letter would be ready for delivery.
Moondancer leaned back a bit, careful not to fall from the cushioned stool, touching her front hooves together, feeling content. After so many years, she would finally be able to make her fantasies come true. She'd finally tell Twilight the truth. And if Twilight didn't love her back...the recipe was already prepared.





"Wow." Twilight glanced over the letter again as Pinkie looked over her shoulder. "I never thought she'd send me an invitation. Especially after what I did to her."
"No, it's because of what you did for her." Pinkie nudged Twilight's plate closer to the lavender mare. "Eat your pancakes!"
"You're not eating either. All you wanted to do when we got here was to find out what the letter says."
Pinkie walked back to her seat, across the purple mushroom table from Twilight, who set the letter and envelope aside. "So are you gonna take me and Spike to Canterlot again?"
"Well, Spike can come if he wants to," Twilight answered. After taking a bite from one of her golden, buttermilk pancakes and swallowing, she added, "Do you want to go?"
"Yeah, of course! Moondancer's a cutie!" Pinkie leaned forward. "Do you think she'll want us to throw a party for her again?" she asked, before taking a bite from her own pancakes.
Twilight shrugged. "Honestly, I don't think so. She said that she wants me to relax."
"She probably knows how hard you work."
"I don't work that hard. I probably should work more, though." Twilight glanced downward. "I don't want to be lazy. What if Princess Celestia needs me for something?"
"Celestia lives in Canterlot too, so you'll be even closer!" Pinkie was watching Twilight eagerly as the alicorn ate. "It all works out, doesn't it?"
Twilight smiled a bit. "I guess you're right. I just don't want to feel like I'm slacking off." She looked back up at Pinkie. "Why do you want to go so bad, anyway?"
"I didn't get to talk to Moondancer a lot last time we were there, so I want to know her better! I want to be friends with her like you are!"
"I don't know if Moondancer's as social as you are." Twilight had finished her first pancake. "But you get along with everyone, so she'll probably take a liking to you."
"Ooh, we should get her a present!" As Pinkie took another bite and swallowed, her ice blue eyes gleaming with excitement, she added, "She likes reading like you, right? Do you know what books she doesn't have?"
Twilight chuckled a bit. "We, uh...kinda gave her every book in the world when we set up that trail..."
"Yeah, that was a real shopping spree, wasn't it? We were lucky there was a sale at the bookstore!"
"Hmm..." They thought over it as they ate some more of their pancakes before Twilight said, "Let's go look for a gift once we're done eating. Maybe our friends can help us out."
Pinkie gestured to the letter on the side of the mushroom table. "Shouldn't you write back first?"
Twilight folded up the letter with her magic and slipped it back inside the envelope. "There's no rush. But can you try to remind me once we're done shopping?"
"You have my word! I'm super good at remembering stuff!" 





Meanwhile, Moondancer was at the new coffee shop in Canterlot with her friends. Her mocha was freshly brewed, and her glasses were steaming up from the heat. She took a sip of it, bracing herself for the fire that would soon spill over her tongue.
"So Twilight's coming to visit again?" Minuette asked excitedly, setting down her own white coffee cup.
Moondancer shrugged. "I just sent the letter earlier this morning. I don't even know if she got it yet."
Lemon Hearts smiled. "She probably has. The postal service has been pretty fast recently. I wonder if they fired that one mailmare? You know, the pegasus from Ponyville Lyra told us about?"
"Who, Ditzy Doo?" Twinkleshine was sprinkling some white sugar into her coffee. "I'm sure she's trying her best."
"Anyway, are you sure Twilight's not busy?" Minuette asked Moondancer. "You know, being the princess of friendship and all?" The blue unicorn took a sip of her dark coffee.
Moondancer used a nearby napkin to attempt to wipe the steam from her glasses. "I tried not to rush her. I was just saying she could come and stay a while if she wanted to."
Lemon Hearts sighed blissfully. "I still can't believe she decided to visit us again. I thought once she'd ran off to Ponyville without saying anything, we were out of sight, out of mind."
"I have a feeling we were for a while," Twinkleshine admitted, swirling a spoon in her coffee with her light blue telekinesis. "Minuette, remember when you, Lyra and I were bridesmaids for Princess Cadance's wedding? Twilight didn't even do more than glance at us. But I was still hoping she'd say hi at some point. It took forever before she finally came around to us again."
"She's come so far," Moondancer said softly. "She used to be just like me. I never would have guessed when we were fillies that she'd be a princess."
"We're still glad you've opened up a little, Moondancer!" Minuette nudged her shoulder with a hoof, smiling reassuringly. "I hope you're not feeling bad about anything!"
Moondancer took another sip from her coffee. "I'm not. I just...wish I could thank Twilight enough."
"You're not still mad at her?" Lemon asked.
"Of course not. She tried as hard as she could to make it up to me. And she really just wanted me to be happy." Moondancer smiled. "It feels good not to be cooped up in my house reading all day. Not that I don't like studying." She closed her eyes. "Twilight used to be like me too. I wonder how she felt when she realized how good friendship felt. Real friendship."
"How did you ou feel?" Twinkleshine asked, setting down her cup after taking a sip from her sweetened coffee.
Moondancer smiled. "Like a vengeful ghost would feel if they were finally at peace. Ever since that party I held, I felt betrayed. All the time. I could never really get over it. I had no idea how I felt towards Twilight. I was sad and confused. So...I lost myself in books to get away from the feelings. Then Twilight finally let those feelings escape, and...I can be happy again."
There was a silence at the table as the ponies took some more sips of their coffee, each sip greedier than the last as the coffee slowly cooled a bit. Then Minuette broke the silence. "So the party really meant that much to you, huh?"
Moondancer nodded. "Honestly, I still don't know exactly how to feel toward Twilight. But I'm definitely grateful."
And soon...I'll finally be able to express it. She was nearly done with her mocha now. She blinked slowly as she took one of the final sips. She has to accept it. She has to accept me. Why wouldn't she love me back?
> Chapter 3
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	"We're gonna fly again?"
Twilight nodded, smiling at the pink pony's excitement. "Yep! Spike's not coming, so it's just you and me. That'll probably make it easier. Plus we don't really have to bring much."
"Yay!" Pinkie bounced over eagerly. "Do you have the present?"
Twilight nodded and presented the gift, neatly wrapped in white and tied with a red ribbon. "I hope nothing goes wrong on the way there. I have to hold you and this present and fly at the same time."
Pinkie nuzzled her cheek. "We'll be fine! You're great at flying!" Twilight softly kissed her nose, which made her giggle. "That tickles!"
"Alright, are you ready to go?"
Pinkie jumped on her, which caught Twilight off guard, making her drop the present. She picked it up again with her magenta magic as Pinkie said, "You bet I am!"
Pinkie leaned forward and hugged Twilight's chest, careful not to hug too tightly--it was a habit she was trying to break--as the lavender feathered wings spread out on her sides. From the entrance to Twilight's castle, they took off for Canterlot.





Today was the day!
Moondancer had prepared the potion, and it was sitting at her bedroom window--it was to be left in a sunny environment. The sunnier the weather, the more affective the potion would be. But it couldn't be too affective. The book said the original recipe ended up with the consumers of the potion getting too lost in each other's eyes to do anything else other than stare at each other. Plus, the cure called for avoiding looking in each other's eyes for an hour. Meaning the effects would wear off while Moondancer was asleep. That was why she altered the recipe a bit. It had to be just right. Twilight had to be in love with her, but not totally obsessed.
There was also a cake she'd made for her guests. It was vanilla with red icing. She'd just finished icing it, and was now back in her room, rereading the letter Twilight had written to her:
Dear Moondancer,
Yes, I'd love to visit you! Pinkie Pie's going to come too, if that's okay. Spike got sick, so he can't come, but he wants me to tell you that he said hi! We're going to come over on Friday. I can't wait to spend time with you! I can finally teach you Hayscartes' method. And Pinkie said she wants to get to know you better, too. I've just gotten done with a week of being busy, so this is just what I need. And we're gonna bring you a surprise, too! It's not much, but...consider it a gift of appreciation.
-Twilight Sparkle
It was short, but it was all Moondancer needed to be happy. Just as she read the cute cursive signature at the bottom of the yellowish paper, there was a knocking at the door. 
She smiled to herself, moved the letter back to its place on her nightstand with her telekinesis, and trotted to the room with the purple wooden front door. The hole that Twilight had accidentally made the last time she was here had been repaired since then, but the place where the hole was filled in was a slightly different shade of purple than the rest of the door, so it was still noticeable. With her pale pink magic, she pulled the door open. As she expected, Twilight Sparkle and Pinkie Pie were standing there, Twilight holding a gift wrapped in white with her magenta telekinesis.
Moondancer smiled. "You came!"
"Of course we did! This is the surprise I told you about," Twilight said, gesturing to the gift that she was still holding. "Can we come in?"
Moondancer nodded. "Of course!"
She made way for the two ponies to enter. She was glad that Pinkie Pie had come too. They didn't really talk much at the party, so this was a chance for them to get to know each other better. The pink mare sniffed the air. "What smells so good?"
Moondancer felt herself blush. "Oh, um...I made a cake...I don't know how good it is, though..."
Twilight smiled at Moondancer. "I didn't know you could bake!"
"It has to be good! It smells delicious!" Pinkie seemed excited. She must've had quite the sweet tooth; Moondancer had noticed that at the party too.
Moondancer turned to the room behind her--the kitchen--and lifted the plate that held the cake with her magic and moved it to the kitchen table. "It's in the kitchen, if you want a slice. I've already cut it."
The three of them headed into the next room. "Oh, I forgot to get the plates!" Moondancer trotted over to the dark brown counter and pushed herself up a bit by placing her front hooves on the green countertop. She nudged open the door to the cupboard, where there were ceramic plates. She pulled out the top three with her magic and set them equally apart on the table. "I hope you like it."
Twilight used her own magic to lift out three slices and placed one on each plate. "Thank you, Moondancer."
"Yeah, thankies!" Pinkie knelt down and took a bite from the front. She chewed a bit and swallowed. "It's amazing! You can really bake!"
"Really?" Moondancer glanced away bashfully. "I just took a recipe from one of the books I have...I don't really bake that often."
Twilight used a fork--she was actually able to since she had a horn--to give herself a bite. "Mmmm," she murmured as she chewed. After swallowing, she said, "Are you sure? You should bake more often. I mean, if you want to."
Pinkie turned to Twilight. "Hey, where'd you put the present?"
"Oh, I put that on her stool in the other room." Twilight smiled at Moondancer. "Bring it in here. I want to see you open it."
Moondancer nodded and retrieved the gift. She loves me, doesn't she...? She got a gift just because she wanted to. Then again, it could've been Pinkie's idea...either way, it's definitely a good sign.
Pinkie was already done with her slice when Moondancer got back. She stared eagerly at Moondancer as she set the gift on the table and slowly unwrapped it with her magic.
It was a white box, just a bit bigger than her hoof. She nudged the lid off with her hoof. There was something shiny inside.
"We tried to find something when we went shopping, but nothing seemed good enough," Twilight told her, having now finished her slice of cake too. "So we had our friend Rarity fix something up for you."
Moondancer lifted the long, silvery thing out of the box. It was a moon pendant. The moon was a shiny purple, and it resembled the one on her cutie mark. She noticed, on the opposite side of the loop from the moon, there was a latch.
"You can use it as a bookmark too!" Pinkie told her excitedly. "You can latch it around the book to mark what page you left off on! Isn't that neato?"
Moondancer held the pendant in her hoof. "It's beautiful," she said softly. "Who's Rarity?" she asked, looking up at her guests, a bit louder. "Is she a jeweler or something?"
"Kind of," Twilight answered.
"She's a fashionista!" Pinkie added. "Except she doesn't usually wear clothes. But she can do what she wants."
"Oh, right, I think I've heard about her." Moondancer lifted the pendant with her magic and gently placed it back in the box, softly placing the lid back on. "I'll put this in my room. I love it. Thank you both."
She carried the box and the wrapping paper, which she was going to throw away, with her pale pink tekinesis as she walked into her room, which happened to be next to the kitchen. She opened the door and closed it behind her. She didn't want Twilight to see her, in case Moondancer did something else, like reread the letter again. Plus, the potion was still at her windowsill.
The green wastebasket was in the corner. As she gently dropped the box on her bed, she tossed the wrapping paper in, saving the red ribbon. It was a nice, shiny ribbon. I wonder if red is still her favorite color. It's still mine for sure.
She dropped the ribbon on the nightstand, on top of the letter from Twilight. She pushed open the door again as she turned to leave the room, and saw Twilight and Pinkie waiting for her.
"Why'd you close the door?" Twilight asked with curious purple eyes.
Ah...I hope I'm not blushing... "Force of habit," Moondancer said, trying to hide her embarrassment. "I, uh, like my privacy." That part was true, so Twilight wouldn't have to suspect anything. Not that Moondancer had been doing anything wrong. She just thought maybe Twilight would think it was creepy that she'd saved the ribbon. And her letter.
Thankfully, they didn't dwell on the subject any longer, as Pinkie asked, "What do you wanna do now?"
"Are you staying overnight?"
Twilight nodded. "We let our friends know. I'm sorry that I didn't talk about that in the letter. We were planning to stay for about five days, but we can leave earlier if you want."
"No, that's perfect," Moondancer replied. "But, I, um...I don't have a guest bed. I can get out and get one, but I don't know if I'll be able to afford two..."
"That's fine!" Pinkie inched closer to Twilight. "We sleep in the same bed all the time!"
Moondancer suddenly felt alarmed. The same bed...? She means platonically...right? "You do?" she asked, trying to sound casual.
Twilight blushed a bit. "Oh...I never told you, did I? Whoops..."
Pinkie kissed Twilight's ear, which flicked afterward. "It's okay! Everypony forgets things!"
They're dating, Moondancer realized, feeling her heart sink. Twilight's in love with someone who isn't me...
	

> Chapter 4
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	"Are you alright, Moondancer?"
Moondancer nodded. "Yes. I-I just didn't see that coming."
Twilight chuckled, glancing downward. "You wouldn't be the first..."
Still, her reaction somewhat surprised Twilight. The fact that she and Pinkie were the same gender definitely wasn't the reason for the strange expression Moondancer had; she'd come out as biromantic to Moondancer during the party they had, and Moondancer herself confessed being a lesbian back when they were fillies.
She'd told Pinkie this, too. Pinkie had been worried about if Moondancer would accept them as a couple. In Ponyville, she was very open about being queer, but she always feared facing discrimination in other towns and cities. Twilight was able to reassure her that, since Moondancer was gay herself, there should be no problem.
But why did Moondancer act like that? After Pinkie kissed her ear, the cream-colored unicorn stared for a couple of seconds, then her purple gaze dropped to the floor. Her posture also sank a little. That definitely was a sign of some negative emotion.
Pinkie, who most likely wanted to avoid an awkward silence, gestured towards the slice of cake on Moondancer's plate. "You still need to finish your cake, Moondancer!"
Moondancer blinked, then lifted up the plate with her magic. "I had a big breakfast, actually...I'll save it for later." She trotted towards the nearby door, to her room where she'd put the pendant. She glanced back over her shoulder and said, "If I were you, I wouldn't come in here just yet. It's way too messy right now, but don't worry, I'll find some time to clean." Then she closed the door behind her.
Pinkie turned to Twilight. "You said she wouldn't be mad, Twilight!" 
"If we're going to talk about this, don't be so loud about it," Twilight replied. "She only just closed the door."
Pinkie nodded, then lowered her voice as she said, "You said she wouldn't be mad, Twilight."
"I know, I don't understand why she looked upset," Twilight replied quietly. "Maybe she thinks I won't spend as much time with her."
"It's fine with me if you do," Pinkie told her. "I want to spend time with her too! And unless she gets mean all of a sudden I wouldn't be jealous of her."
Twilight was quiet for a few monents before saying, "Let's...try not to be too sappy in front of her. I don't want to make things awkward for her. Maybe that's why she seems upset." She glanced at the door. "I hope she's okay. She's been in there for a full minute."
"Maybe she's trying to find something," Pinkie suggested.
"Maybe," Twilight said quietly. "I'll go in there to check on her."
But just as Twilight took a step towards the door, it opened up, and Moondancer stepped out. She smiled. "I found an air mattress in my closet. And some sleeping bags. I know that's kind of tacky, but don't worry. I'll try to find some more options."
Pinkie nudged Twilight's shoulder. "Can we use an air mattress?"
"Uh, yeah, if you want. The only problem is I'm gonna be really self-conscious if we deflate it."
"Eh, we'll try our best." Pinkie bounced a bit. "Can I inflate it? I'm super good at inflating stuff! It's gonna be like a giant balloon bed!"
Moondancer chuckled softly. "Yeah, go ahead. I'll get it out for you." She poked her head in her room and a pale pink glow emanated from her cream-colored horn. She ducked to the side as she pulled the deflated, navy blue air mattress out the doorway. Still holding it, she glanced at Pinkie. "I'll find the pump for you, too. You can't inflate this using your mouth, you'll pass out. That wouldn't be a good way to start your stay here."
"I've passed out before!" Pinkie declared with determination. "I can do it!" She lunged toward the air mattress, but Moondancer pulled it away.
"No! Trust me, I've tried, it's not fun!" She looked over at Twilight. "Can you keep this away from her while I find the pump?"
Pinkie, who tried to look as angry as she could, said, "She doesn't need to! I'm a very responsible individual!"
Twilight and Moondancer both giggled softly before Twilight said, "Yeah, sure, I'll handle it."
As Moondancer went back in the room, closing her door once more, Pinkie looked at Twilight seriously and said softly, "Can you make sure she's okay? When I'm inflating the balloon bed?"
"I did already," Twilight answered.
"Yeah, but she's more comfortable talking to you, so maybe if I'm not in here you'll really know if--"
She stopped abruptly as the door opened again, this time with a black air pump emerging with Moondancer. "I can help, if you want."
Pinkie shook her head. "No, it's fine! I'll blow this up in the other room!" She walked over to grab the pump, and the mattress as Twilight released it, then glanced at Twilight before leaving the room.
She's not gonna spill out anything. But I'll try. Twilight cleared her throat. "So, um...are you sure you're okay?"
Moondancer blinked behind her big, black-framed glasses. "What do you mean?"
"When we told you about our...our relationship, you seemed kind of uncomfortable."
"Uncomfortable?" Moondancer repeated. "No, I'm fine. I'm happy for you. Really, I am. It was just a surprise."
Twilight could tell there was more to it than that, but she said, "You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to. We don't want to make you uncomfortable."
"No, I'm...I'm okay."
And it was true, she was. Or at least, she hoped she was. Moondancer was trying to convince herself that everything was fine. She could go on with her week with Twilight and Pinkie knowing that Twilight wouldn't love her. It was just a crush, after all. She'd get over it.
It would just take some time, wouldn't it?
Yet there was another part of her, so full of desire, that didn't want to let go of Twilight. It's not that she was mad at Pinkie--in fact, Moondancer was so afraid that the part of her yearning for Twilight's love would end up hurting Pinkie. Pinkie was innocent. It wasn't her fault that Moondancer was drowning in unrequited love.
But it didn't have to be unrequited.
Moondancer glanced at the door to her bedroom. The potion was inside, sitting at the windowsill. I can't. It's too dangerous. I don't know what'll happen. I haven't tested it. I can't risk it, I can't.
Maybe it was worth the risk, though. Moondancer weighed the possibilities in her head. If she didn't give Twilight the potion, she would have to force herself to watch Twilight long for someone else. She hoped it would fade eventually...but what if it didn't? What if she suffered this feeling forever?
Moondancer wanted to give Twilight to potion so badly. She just wanted Twilight to love her. But at the same time, she was afraid of it.
> Chapter 5
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Crickets chirped outside the window. Bright moonlight flowed into the room. The bedsheets were an absolute mess. But those weren't what was keeping Moondancer awake.
She sat up, her vision blurred without her glasses on. She stared at the fuzzy shape of the bottle at her windowsill, filled with a pale pink liquid. It could change everything. It could seriously hurt someone...but Moondancer decided she was willing to go that far for Twilight's love.
Moondancer lifted the bottle with telekinesis as she jumped down from her bed. She took soft hoofsteps towards her door. It let out a long creak as she pulled it open. She flinched at the noise in such quiet surroundings, but proceeded to walk out and place the bottle on the table, with a soft thud and a little swishing of the liquid inside.
Just then, she heard somepony approaching. She glanced to the side to see Twilight Sparkle. How convenient, she thought, and hated herself for it.
Twilight let out a soft yawn. It was so cute. "What's that drink?" she asked, her quiet words slurring together slightly.
"Did I wake you up?" Moondancer whispered.
Twilight smiled. "No. Something else did." Moondancer panicked for a moment--If she heard me come out of my room, she'll be so suspicious--but then Twilight added, "Pinkie almost pushed me off the air mattress in her sleep. She didn't mean to, of course. She just tends to move around in her sleep a lot. Anyway, what's in that bottle?"
Moondancer glanced downward. I have to lie. I don't want to lie to Twilight, but...I want her to love me so badly. "I've...been practicing brewing potions. I made this one to help me sleep. I could use it tonight."
"Can I try it?" Twilight asked.
Moondancer's heart raced. "Of course. Just leave some for me, okay?" Her heartbeat quickened, realizing she could regret those words soon.
Twilight pulled off the cork in the bottle with her magenta magic, and pulled the bottle itself closer to her. Moondancer couldn't help but bite her lip as Twilight touched her mouth to the opening of the bottle and took in a soft slurp of the potion. She looked over at Moondancer, and instantly lost her grip. The glass bottle flew to the floor and smashed against it, a pale pink river flowing from inside over the glass shards and and pooling into a puddle, in a matter of seconds.
Twilight couldn't move, or speak. Her heart was racing. She couldn't even think properly. She was almost...hypnotized by Moondancer. She couldn't tear her eyes away from the shimmering violet ones of Moondancer. As the cream-colored unicorn spoke her name in a soft, low voice, Twilight wanted to take a step closer, but she couldn't. She was paralyzed.
And Twilight began to forget. Why was she standing here? What time of day was it? Where was she? She only focused on Moondancer, who called her name again, this time more frantically.
She couldn't look away. She didn't want to look away. But she had to, because suddenly, she fell to the ground.
"Twilight!" Moondancer rushed over, wincing as she stepped on the glass pieces from the shattered bottle, and pressed her hoof to Twilight's chest. She flinched, startled by how quickly Twilight's heart was beating. And Moondancer's own heart started to match that pace. What am I supposed to do? The antidote for the original potion wouldn't work with this, would it?
She heard hoofsteps and looked up to see Pinkie approaching, staring down at Twilight's unconscious body. The earthpony blinked in bewilderment for a moment, then ran over to lay down beside Twilight. "What happened to her? Is she okay?"
"I-I don't know," Moondancer stuttered. Yes you do, she told herself silently. You gave her a rigged potion that could possibly kill her, all because you were selfish. You're one step away from raping her. "I wanted to give her a potion I made to..." She couldn't finish. She didn't want to lie, but there was no way she was telling Pinkie that she had intended to steal her girlfriend. "I should have tested it. I'm sorry...I'm sorry..."
In a second, Moondancer felt something wrap around her. It was Pinkie, hugging her. For a moment, they sat there in the dark kitchen silently. Moondancer realized Pinkie was trembling...or maybe that was Moondancer herself. The unicorn felt something fuzzy touch her ear. Then Pinkie released her. "What do we do?" she asked quietly. 
It was so unusual to see Pinkie so quiet and calm, but Moondancer set that aside. "Could you...find some help? I'm going to look to see if I can find anything useful in the books I have."
Pinkie nodded. She was an earthpony, so she had to awkwardly drag Twilight out of the kitchen and, as gently as she could, throw her onto the air mattress. A little air seeped out. She made a note not to tell Twilight whenever she woke up.
Would she wake up?
She couldn't worry about that now. Getting herself worked up would only delay getting Twilight help. And if she didn't get Twilight help, she could slip into a coma or even die.
Pinkie hurried out of Moondancer's house. It was about midnight. When she left Moondancer's gloomy yard, she suddenly realized she didn't know where the hospital in Canterlot was, which was probably the worst case scenario. Maybe she could just yell into the streets, but that would probably only get ponies annoyed. Oh well. It was worth a try.
Thankfully, for the sake of everyone in the neighborhood, Moondancer opened the door behind her to say, "Come back in. I think she's fine, she's waking up."
Moondancer didn't wait to see if Pinkie was following her. She turned and trotted over to where Twilight lay, her sleepy eyes blinking in the darkness. She looked over at Moondancer, then flinched, letting out some kind of whispery yelp, her eyes widening in surprise before relaxing again.
"Um, did...did I scare you?" Moondancer asked, chucking timidly.
Twilight smiled sheepishly and nodded. "Yeah. Where's Pinkie?"
Oh, thank Celestia. She remembers who Pinkie is. Before Moondancer could answer Twilight, the pink pony herself jumped up next to Moondancer, startling Twilight again, though this time she only twitched back silently.
"Are you hurt?" Pinkie asked, her calm demeanor dissipating immediately. "Did you lose your memory? Did you slip into a nightmarish coma and--"
"Whoa, calm down, I'm fine." Twilight stretched her neck to kiss Pinkie's nose, silencing her. It was a soft, quiet kiss, like a fuzzy whisper, and Moondancer felt herself yearning again. "What time is it?"
"It's...still nighttime." Moondancer glanced out the window, which she'd cleared of dust just the day before. Princess Luna's bright moon was still watching over Canterlot. "I...guess I'm not that good at making potions." It was an understatement and she knew it. I'm such an idiot. I'm never doing that again. Never.
"Well, it must've worked right away. I don't remember anything after I drank it." Twilight then blinked, as if in realization, and glanced at Pinkie. "But, why did you get out of bed?"
Moondancer was hoping Pinkie wouldn't say anything, but--"Because you just fell to the floor! And your heart was super fast! I thought you were hurt!"
"Really? That's...odd...I'd think that would prevent me from sleeping."
The pale beige unicorn could not bring her eyes up again. She seems fine, but what's going to happen between us? Why was she looking at me like...the way I see her...?